The law firm Ropes & Gray yesterday announced that it would be taking a more "enlightened approach" to helping its associates balance their work and family lives. The Boston-based firm launched a program it calls Impact, "designed to accommodate the times when the demands of personal and professional obligations can often collide." The idea is to provide associates with greater flexibility to adjust their work schedules when family or health issues require it, allowing them to remain on the career track, but "at a more individualized pace." Options for an associate needing more family time could include:

Reduced time commitments

More flexibility to work off-site or staggered hours

"A different pace to partnership"

Also eligible for the Impact program are attorneys returning from parental leave. The firm will permit new parents to work a reduced schedule for another six months after returning from parental leave. The program will be overseen by partners Joshua S. Levy in Boston and Gabrielle E. Higgins in Palo Alto and administered by Margie Boone, the firm's career guidance manager. "We want our talented associates to pursue their legal careers at Ropes & Gray, and we're putting the energy and commitment of the firm behind doing whatever we can to make that happen," said Levy in a statement announcing the program.

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A Kinder, Gentler Ropes & Gray

The law firm Ropes & Gray yesterday announced that it would be taking a more "enlightened approach" to helping its associates balance their work and family lives. The Boston-based firm launched a program it calls Impact, "designed to accommodate the times when the demands of personal and professional obligations can often collide." The idea is to provide associates with greater flexibility to adjust their work schedules when family or health issues require it, allowing them to remain on the career track, but "at a more individualized pace." Options for an associate needing more family time could include:

Reduced time commitments

More flexibility to work off-site or staggered hours

"A different pace to partnership"

Also eligible for the Impact program are attorneys returning from parental leave. The firm will permit new parents to work a reduced schedule for another six months after returning from parental leave. The program will be overseen by partners Joshua S. Levy in Boston and Gabrielle E. Higgins in Palo Alto and administered by Margie Boone, the firm's career guidance manager. "We want our talented associates to pursue their legal careers at Ropes & Gray, and we're putting the energy and commitment of the firm behind doing whatever we can to make that happen," said Levy in a statement announcing the program.